The Perfect Fix (Perfect Kisses #5) - Miley Maine Page 0,80

on, you know I have to tease. What kind of brother would I be if I didn’t?”

“The good kind,” I muttered under my breath.

“What was that?”

“Nothing!” I looked up at him with a shining smile and winked.

He laughed. “Okay. Besides, can you imagine? You and Grayson together? That would be way too strange. You’ve known him since you were a little kid!”

“Right.” I let out a laugh like his, but it felt faker than anything. I wanted to imagine it, needed to, if only because I was so heartbroken at the moment and needed the distraction. I wished suddenly that Ethan and I were still together so that Grayson wouldn’t bring about all these strange feelings. Oh, who was I kidding? I would be feeling them whether or not I was with Ethan. Things had certainly fallen apart enough already to allow something else to start growing in the cracks between the two of us.

“Well, he’ll be coming in tomorrow, a little before our early dinner.”

“It’ll be good to see him again,” I said.

He grinned. “I bet. What has it been for you? About ten years?”

“Thirteen,” I said, without even thinking and pretending like I couldn’t see Sebastian’s smile widen. It was easy math and I’d just been thinking about it. I had spent more than half my life not seeing Grayson. What would it be like for the two of us to meet again?

“That’s a while,” Sebastian said, scratching his head. “I forgot it’s been that long, but then again, you didn’t see him at all after he moved.”

“I was always a little jealous,” I admitted begrudgingly, “that you got to see him and I didn’t. I wanted to be better friends with him, too.”

“Well, now’s your chance,” Sebastian said, a large smile on his face. “Let him cheer you up. He should be pretty good at that.”

“I hope so,” I said, flopping back down on my bed. “I really could use some holiday cheer.”

“Am I not enough for you?” Sebastian said in half-shock, dramatically pressing his hand to chest before bending down to pick the book I had been reading off my bed. “What is this? Dragons Before Midnight?”

“Give it back!” I said, sitting up and trying to snatch the book from his hands. I had been reading dragon-shifter romance recently, and I knew Sebastian would find it really weird, especially since the spot I had left off on had been right before a sex scene.

“No, I wanna know what this is,” he insisted, taking another few steps back. “Let’s see…”

“Don’t you dare read that,” I threatened, still trying to grab the book from his hands, but he wasn’t letting me have it back.

“Why? What’s so interesting about it?”

“Nothing!” I insisted, finally catching hold of the book and yanking it to my chest. “You just wouldn’t like it, that’s all.”

Sebastian got a mischievous little grin on his face. “Oh? And why is that? Is it...explicit?”

My face warmed instantly, giving me away. “I knew it!” he shouted, pointing a finger at me. “What, is it dragons having sex? Are you into lizards?”

“No!” I insisted. “It’s about dragon-shifters. They’re like werewolves, but they can change between dragon and human on command. They’re human when they have sex.”

“Or maybe that’s just what you want me to think.”

I shrugged. “I mean, at this point if you read it you’re implicated, too, you know?”

“How so?”

“Well, you already know what it’s about, so if you read it then you’re clearly interested.” I raised my eyebrows suggestively.

“I’m not.”

“You’re, too!” I stuck my tongue out at him, earning me a hearty laugh. He ruffled my hair, then stepped back.

“Alright, I think I’m gonna head downstairs for now. Call me if you need anything.”

“I will,” I replied, shutting the door behind him as he left before sinking back into the warm depths of my bed.

I had so much to do to get ready for tomorrow now. Crush or no crush, I couldn’t ignore the fact that I wanted to make a good impression on Grayson. It was going to be his first time seeing me in thirteen years, after all. I wanted to show him that I had matured into a woman, that I wasn’t still some kid. And I wanted him to think that was a good thing, too. So, I decided that now was as good a time as any to pick out something nice to wear for our Thanksgiving dinner.

I didn’t really go to many parties, so the few party outfits I had were all for the warmer months. In the winter, I tended to hole up in my blankets and read the day away, so the clothes that I did have for the cold nights were based around comfort and warmth, not cuteness.

I tried to reason with myself and say that I could just show up in a sweater, jeans, and a ponytail and be absolutely fine—Grayson might even think I looked cute—but that wasn’t enough for me. I didn’t want to risk his first impression of the older me on something that didn’t make me feel like my most confident self. So, finally, I ended up settling on an ensemble that was both cute and comfortable: a pair of white, sweater-knit fleece-lined tights paired with a dark gray cashmere sweater dress and a cute gold belt. I would put on some dainty gold jewelry, wear my hair in a bun, and put on some gold-colored flats. I would look like a real, honest-to-God adult.

It definitely wasn’t very practical for going outside, as I would need at least another sweater, a coat, and a different pair of shoes for that. It was already cold enough to snow, even though it was only Thanksgiving. I didn’t mind since I only had to leave the house occasionally, but it did mean the bundling up was very important unless I wanted to become an icicle. But this was Thanksgiving dinner, which meant we would be inside our warm, cozy house, eating yummy, warm food, and there would be no need to go outside for more than a couple of minutes, maybe just to greet Grayson.

And this outfit would give me that extra boost of confidence I needed to see Grayson again. I just hoped it would be enough to keep me from turning into a mess right in front of him. That would be more embarrassing than I could bear. Sebastian would never let me forget it, and I would never forgive myself.

Hope you loved the excerpt of Perfect Kisses. You can read the full story here!

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